


Flavour of Life

by kyjr



Category: Johnny's Entertainment, KAT-TUN (Band)
Genre: AU, Angst, Horror (sort of), M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-12
Updated: 2013-10-12
Packaged: 2017-12-29 04:01:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1000630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyjr/pseuds/kyjr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Koki had no idea where he was. All he knew was that he had to get out. And fast.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Flavour of Life

"Where the fuck---?"

Koki looked around, at the damp, dark walls that surrounded him. There were no windows, and the air was stale and rank. He could hear the scuttle of cockroaches as they rushed out of his way, heading towards safety in the cracks in the wall. One wall was that of bars, seemingly rusted but were stronger than they appeared. The place echoed death.

The last thing Koki remembered was walking down the street, arms burdened with grocery shopping. Then there was a blinding pain.

And now he was here.

His head was aching. He clutched at it, and stumbled over to the bars, leaning heavily on them as he tried to see past the darkness. There was only one small, flickering lightbulb in the middle of the room, making it difficult to see. His eyes had not yet grown used to the darkness around him.

Koki did, however, manage to see a movement. Something was moving out there; outside of the cell he was in.

"Hello?" he called, leaning further onto the bars. "Is someone there?"

A silky voice floated back to him. "I'm here."

Koki froze. The voice was practically paralysing, deep and sultry. "Who...is it?"

"My name is not of importance. You will not be alive for too much longer, and as such you shouldn't waste your remaining energy on remembering something so trivial, should you?" Koki's heart was beating heavily against his chest, and his eyes darted to and fro, attempting to find the person who the voice belonged to.

He was scared, there was no denying that. He had broken into a cold sweat, and was shaking. Koki fixed his grip on the bars. "W-what do you mean? Show yourself," he said, his voice stronger than he felt.

A chuckle was heard, and it sent a shiver down Koki's spine. A man stepped out of the shadows and into the little circle of light. He was dressed in a long, black coat, with dark pants and dress shoes. His hair was dark, too - Koki couldn't tell if it was black or brown in this light - and not a strand was out of place. He was beautiful, Koki had to admit, but his large eyes were cold and staring. He was the personification of the word fear.

"Are we happy now?" The man asked. Koki's blood ran cold as the man smiled. His teeth were elongated and pointed, with what looked like serrated edges. He leapt back in fear, and the man smiled wider. "I hope you'll enjoy your short stay. Now, I must be off. I will be back for you later, though..."

Koki was left standing there in the cell alone, panting heavily. He slid to the floor, leaning against the bars. That man had not been human, he was sure of it. Those teeth were too long and sharp to have belonged to a mere human. Then...what was he?

Something that wanted to eat him, that was sure. Koki had to get out.

He stood up on shaking legs, using the wall and the cell bars to stable himself. He cast a look about the cell - it was practically empty, bar a small table. He stumbled over to it, his mind still reeling. He was acting purely out of instinct. He knew he had to escape. That, or be killed.

There were roots growing out of the roof of the cell. Koki figured that if he could work one into the lock on the door, and twist it right, it might just budge. He stood upon the table, which wobbled dangerously, and tried to break the ends off one of the smaller roots. It wouldn't budge. He tried harder, but slipped and fell face-first into the almost-mud beneath him.

Koki spat the dirt out in disgust, and glared at the roots above him in anger. They stayed unmoving, mocking him in his helpless state. But Tanaka Koki did not like being thought of as helpless, nor did he like the thought of being dinner to some kind of sick monster.

He stood up again, and searched through his pockets. There had to be something, _something_ , there that would be useful. He found his own set of keys, his wallet and some loose change. He sighed, and hit his fist against the floor in frustration.

How was he meant to escape with just his keys and wallet?

Koki stared at his measley possessions, hope dwindling. In a strange sudden fit of awareness, however, he grabbed his keys. Koki, all the while looking about in case the man came back, unhooked his keys and stuffed them back into his pockets. He then unwound the ring which had held his keys with much difficulty, crying out in pain as the metal dug into his fingers. He quickly stifled the noise.

His blood was splattered over the ring as he crawled over to the bars with the straightened piece of metal in his slightly mangled hands. He lay on the floor, angling himself so that he could see what he was doing. It took him a few minutes, twisting the metal around in the lock of the cell, but he eventually heard the 'click' that signalled that the lock had opened.

"Oh thank God," he murmured to himself, almost subconciously, as the door swung open with a creak. He froze, heart immediately leaping into his throat, terrified that the man would come back. But there was no movement, and he straightened up, pocketing the metal piece in case he would need it again.

He practically tiptoed to the other open door, acutely aware of every sound he was making. Every step of his foot, every breath taken, every crinkle of his clothes sent him on edge. It was like he was waiting for the other to leap out of the shadows.

Once he reached the door, he could see a long, dark corridor. He decided to follow it, still on tenderhooks, until he reached a corner, and then another corridor, with one door at the end. Koki swallowed the fear that was still mounting, and pushed forward, quickly finding that there were more corridors leading from the main one, but he kept to this path.

A maze was all he needed.

His breathing quickened again as he neared the door. In the poor light, he could tell that it was strangely ornate, with intricate little carvings here and there. However, he didn't stop to admire the delicate work, and opened the door as slowly as possible, heart ramming against his chest.

There was no-one in the room, it seemed. This room was much brighter, with two large chandeliers hanging down from a high ceiling. It was lavishly decorated - gold and polished wood stood out from the almost-white walls. Koki's eyes stung, being assaulted with this onslaught of light after the darkness back in the cell.

Koki carefully walked into the strange, empty room, and was about to make his way over to another door at the end of the room when he heard a noise, and paused. Straightaway, he knew that it wasn't the man from before; the atmosphere in the room wasn't threatening.

Koki looked about, eyebrows furrowing. He knew there was someone there - or maybe something - but he didn't want to call out.

And then he looked up.

A large, golden cage hung above him, swinging gently. He hadn't seen it before, as the chandeliers were reflecting off the gold bars and creating a harsh shine. He had to wonder what was inside it, to make it move like that. It must have been pretty large, whatever it was.

There was a whimper, and a strange noise, both coming from the cage above him. Koki knew he should be rushing towards that door right now, and not stopping to ponder about the contents of the cage, but he found himself rooted to the floor.

Curse his curious streak.

There was a lever in the corner of the room. Koki followed the line of the wires that seemed attached to it, and figured that the lever allowed the cage to be lowered. He carefully, slowly, pushed the lever down.

The cage jerked with a loud, jarring noise that made Koki jump and check his surroundings carefully. _You stupid idiot, what the hell are you doing,_ he thought, rolling his eyes at himself. He was meant to be running for his life, and yet here he was, wondering what kind of pet his soon-to-be killer owned.

However, he lowered the cage more, until it moved by itself and practically _slammed_ onto the white tiles beneath. It bounced, and then settled.

"Well, that was stupid," he muttered to himself, but looked about quickly, breathing hard. If he had heard him...

Koki hurried over to the cage. From here, it looked just like a large bird cage, all curved bars and one large, decorated door at the front. He couldn't see inside, though, from his position near the wall, so he walked forward carefully.

There was no animal inside.

It was a human.

Koki gasped, before rushing forward. It seemed as though the person inside had heard him moving, but they only drew their knees to their chest as they lay on the floor of their cage. As Koki came closer, it was obvious that the person inside was shaking, with fear or the cold, he didn't know.

"Not again...please...you just did it this morning..." was the whimper from the other.

Koki felt sick. "What're you talking about?" he asked, hand already searching for the wire to unpick the lock on this cage.

The person inside raised their head, turning to look at Koki with wide, brown eyes. "W-who are you?"

It was a man. He was of a light build, with a slim body and slight muscles. He had copper hair, which was matted and tangled, and fell slightly over his eyes. His eyes were large and emotional - there was a mixture of fear, surprise and relief shining within their endless depths. He was pale, deathly pale, and he looked tired.

"My name is Tanaka Koki," he said, moving to crouch infront of the still-sitting man. "What's yours?"

"U-Ueda Tatsuya," he answered softly, crawling over to him. "What're you doing here?"

"Escaping. And so are you," Koki said, worming the piece of metal into the lock and moving it around.

The man gasped. "What? No - just leave. Go, hurry up; he'll be back soon!"

Koki paused. "Who? Who is he?"

Ueda shook his head. "Hurry up and get out, if you can. Leave me here," he said, moving to pull Koki's hand off the lock. But Koki was stronger, and wrenched his arm out of his grip.

"Too bad, you're coming, too."

"Why?"

"Because I have no idea who or what that thing is, and I'm not leaving anyone down here," he said, smiling as the lock sprung open. "Come on." Koki opened the cage door, but the other just looked up at him, torn.

"I--I don't know..."

"Hurry, I don't know when he'll be b-- What's wrong?" But Koki knew what was wrong, by the way the air grew thick with fear. He slowly turned around.

The man with the pointed teeth stood leaning against the wall, soulless eyes drilling into his own. "No, please, continue," he said, crossing his arms.

"Yamashita..."

"Tatsuya, I expected better from you," he said cooly, moving closer. Ueda scurried to the back of the cage. "Stay there, my sweet-blooded companion." Ueda shuddered.

The man grabbed Koki by the collar of his shirt, holding him close before breathing his fear in. He sighed, and smiled wickedly, showing off those terrible teeth of his. He threw Koki into the cage with all of his strength, and slammed the door shut behind them, locking it once again with the ring of keys he kept in his pocket.

"You smell good, stupid little human," he said, towering above the two. "You think you can escape? Good luck." The man moved away, but not before the cage jerked once again and it was being raised back to the roof. "Goodbye."

They heard the man leave, and Koki turned to Ueda, who was still shaking. "You okay?" Ueda nodded, but kept his eyes on the floor of the cage. Koki sighed. "What's all this about? Who is he?" Ueda didn't say anything.

Koki sighed, and moved back to the door. He had pocketed the metal ring before the man had thrown him in, and now he tried once again to pick the lock.

"What're you _doing?_ " Ueda gasped, trying to pry Koki's hands away, but he wouldn't budge. "Stop!"

"Why? So he can come back and kill us? Sorry, but I don't want to die right now," Koki said forcefully, pushing Ueda's hands away. The man fell to the floor with a thump. "Are you alright?"  
"I'm fine," Ueda said, brushing himself off and kneeling once again next to Koki. He watched him for a while, until he asked, "How do you know how to do that?"

"I'm good like that," was all he said. Ueda gave him a look. "You adapt. In this world, not everyone can get by using traditional means."

"So you're a crook."

"You could say that," Koki said distractedly, and then the lock gave way again.

"His name is Yamashita," Ueda said quickly, as Koki swung the door open.

"Huh?" Koki paused.

"Yamashita. I don't know his first name."

Koki turned around, to look at the wide-eyed man next to him. "Yamashita?" Ueda nodded. "What _is_ he?"

Ueda looked uncomfortable. "A vampire."

" _What?_ " Of all the answers Koki had been expecting, this was not one of them.

"Believe what you want. If you try to escape, he'll just find you again," Ueda said, hopelessly.

For some reason, Koki actually believed the beautiful boy infront of him. There was just something utterly terrifying about this Yamashita - something otherworldly.

"Alright, then. How're we going to get down?" Koki asked.

"Didn't you hear me? We can't. He's just going to find us," Ueda hissed, as Koki practically dangled out of the cage trying to find a way down.

"Is it too far to jump?"

"Are you even listening to me?" Ueda asked, voice still soft.

"Not really, no," Koki answered. Ueda huffed.

"If you want to get down, I suggest jumping. Or you could leap from here to the top of that cupboard over there - you'll have to climb around the side of the cage - and then onto the chest of drawers next to it and you'll be down," Ueda said matter-of-factly. Koki stared.

"How long have you been here?"

"No idea. Long enough to memorise an escape route."

"Right, well, let's see if this works," Koki said decisively, carefully standing up and catching hold of the bars. Against Ueda's warning gasp, he swung himself around, so that he was now standing on the outside of the cage. He focused on placing his feet carefully so that he could make his way around until he could see the cupboard in front of him. It was still quite far away, but he was sure that he could reach it if he jumped.

"Come back! You'll kill yourself!" Ueda pleaded. However, Koki noticed that he had moved over to the opposite side of the cage, so that they were balanced and to make sure the cage wouldn't rock too much.

Koki took a deep breath, making sure not to look down and only focus on the top of the cupboard. It was quite narrow, and that would make it difficult to land upon, but Koki had to try. He had to get both of them out.

"Once I'm down, I'll lower you," Koki said.

"No!"

"You've been here for ages, thinking up escape plans! Why not move now?"

"...I'm scared."

" _Scared?_ This isn't scary. That...Yamashita is scary. This is only a tiny portion of your life. This is your only chance."

"...okay," Ueda said, voice small.

"Good." Koki took another deep breath, looked behind him and into Ueda's expressive eyes and nodded at the other. When he received a nod in return, he rocked his body so that the cage moved on it's chains, and readied himself.

Koki jumped as the cage swung towards the cupboard. Ueda gasped as the cage jerked with the loss of his weight, and scurried back into the middle, grasping onto the bars to keep himself stable. Koki realised too late that he had swung too far, and hit the wall with a thud, bouncing off it with a grunt. Pain filled his body, but it was dull and faded away quickly. He tumbled down, but luckily managed to catch himself on the chest of drawers before he could hit the floor. The chest of drawers wobbled as he landed on it's wooden surface, and collapsed, falling forwards and toppling Koki off. He landed on the floor with a groan, cushioned slightly by the broken timber of the furniture.

"Are you okay?" Ueda's voice asked.

"Y-yeah..." he answered, moaning in pain as he sat up gingerly and rubbed the small of his back.

Koki stood up slowly, waiting a while before the pain in his back had decreased slightly. "Hang on, I'll lower you down now," he said, carefully making his way over to the lever once again. "Hold onto something." Koki didn't wait for a confirmation, but pushed down on the lever and the cage came crashing to the floor. He saw Ueda's body, which was lying on the ground, bounce from the force. "Are you alright?"

Ueda nodded, breathing heavily. He stood up gingerly, making sure nothing was broken, and he nodded again.

"Great, let's get going," Koki said, and grabbed Ueda's thin wrist before rushing to the door.

The corridor from the grand room was as dull as the one before it, and it took a while before their eyes grew accustomed to it. Koki took his shoes off - Ueda hadn't been wearing any - and they padded off down the tunnel, the only sound being their bare skin touching the cold pavers that lined the floor, and their breaths. Koki realised that his hand was still holding Ueda's wrist, and he let it drop. A few seconds later, a hand found it's way into his own.

"Where're we going?" Ueda whispered, as they bypassed numerous doors.

"No idea," he whispered back. "I'm just going straight."

"Sl-slow down, please. I haven't run in who knows how long," Ueda said, allowing himself to be dragged behind Koki.

"Oh, sorry," he said, slowing his pace slightly. They ran along for what seemed like hours, but since they had no concept of time in this godforsaken place, they couldn't be sure. Somehow, though, the fact that he wasn't alone in all of this was the thing that pushed Koki to go further. He looked behind him, and Ueda met his eyes, giving him a small smile before they quickened their pace.

They had to stop more than once as Ueda's leg muscles began to cramp up. He sat against the wall, massaging his legs as Koki stood above him, looking around. They were both panting heavily by now, and sweat had started to form on their skin.

"You okay now?"

"Not - _ow_ \- not yet," Ueda replied, a grimace on his face. As he moved his hands up and down his leg muscle, his large shirt slipped down one shoulder, and Koki gasped.

"What the fuck is _that?_ " Koki hissed, crouching down to get a closer look. Ueda's eyes widened, and he pulled his shirt back up.

"Nothing. It's nothing; ignore it."

"I can't ignore it. It's a fucking massive _bite mark_." And it was. A large ring of dull red adorned the junction of where Ueda's neck met his shoulder. It was clear to Koki that this was the work of Yamashita. "What the heck did he _do_ to you?" he asked, moving to touch the mark before pulling away quickly. "Sorry."

Ueda shook his head, and continued rubbing his muscles. "I'm his supply," he said. Koki cocked an eyebrow at him. "I-- He uses my blood if he can't find a suitable...meal."

"What?" Koki asked, eyes wide. "That's disgusting - and you _let him?_ "

"It's not like I had a choice!" Ueda snapped. He lowered his tone quickly after remembering where they were. "Every morning, he'll come in, lower the cage, and take as much blood as he needs."

Koki felt the bile rising up; he had to turn away from Ueda as he emptied the contents of his stomach onto the floor. He coughed and wiped his mouth, grimacing. "Sorry. But...but what happens after?"

"I don't know - I'm unconscious by then." The despair and fright on Ueda's face as he turned to Koki was almost palpable as he whispered, "Save me."

Koki couldn't help but draw the insecure man into his arms. "I will. Don't you worry... We'd better get moving." Ueda nodded, and stood up with Koki's help. He swiped at the tears on his face, and smiled slightly at Koki, before they started walking again. Their pace crept to a run after a while.

They met corner after corner; door after door; darkness after darkness; shadow after shadow. They lost count of the amount of doors and open doorways they had encountered as they ran, slipping upon the rat droppings that littered the floor. Until--

"Stop," Ueda whispered, pulling on Koki's arm.

"What're you doing?" Koki asked, as they paused running.

"Can you hear that?"

As Ueda stopped talking, he could vaguely make out sounds. They were quite faint, but noticeable. "What is it?" He turned to Ueda, whose face was pale.

"Yamashita."

"Seriously?" Ueda nodded. "We've gotta go. Now."

They broke out into a run again, renewed fear driving their feet to go faster. They had to get away. Suddenly Koki noticed something...

...the sounds weren't disappearing.

They were getting louder.

Ueda had realised the same thing, and he turned to him, eyes wide. "Should we backtrack?"

Koki shook his head. "We'll get even more l---"

Koki's sentence was interrupted by a long, high-pitched wail. Koki and Ueda stopped dead. Koki gripped Ueda's arm, and forced him to run. All he could think about was running; they had to get out; they had to get past Yamashita. They had to survive.

But then Koki was being dragged back and Ueda was whimpering and then they were both on the floor, tangled together. Koki looked up, eyes squinting due to the pain of landing on stone, until the now-familiar fear filled him.

Yamashita stood above them, looking down with fury blazing within the depths of his black eyes. He growled deeply, the sound rippling through the air. Ueda screamed as Yamashita reached down and pulled him up by his hair, holding him up with his feet just inches from the floor.

" _What do you think you're doing?"_ Yamashita let out, jaw set. When Ueda didn't answer, he shook him, and the other man let out another shriek, clutching at Yamashita's pale hands with his own, weaker ones.

"Please, I--"

"Let him go!" Koki yelled, but he went unheeded.

"I kept you alive, didn't I? I fed you. I loved you," Yamashita murmured to Ueda. Ueda himself was desperately trying to get away from the vampire, attempting to move his head away from the others' face but grunting when it pulled on his hair. "Why are you leaving me?"

The speech that should have been pitiful and pathetic just seemed more frightening as the other spoke in a low tone and glowered at Ueda. Koki saw Ueda twitch as Yamashita let him down, and he crumpled to the floor with a groan, clutching at his aching head. Koki saw Yamashita shake his hand, to rid it of the strands of Ueda's hair that had been wrenched free of his scalp, and his lip curled in disgust.

Yamashita grabbed hold of Ueda's shoulder roughly, dragging him back up and pushing him against the opposite wall with all his strength. Ueda groaned again as pain shot through his body once again. Fright was evident in his wide brown eyes as Yamashita held him against the wall, moving ever closer. Koki had no idea what to do; he knew he was no match against Yamashita's strength, but he couldn't just let him kill Ueda.

"Stop!" he yelled, standing up and trying to pry Yamashita's hands away from Ueda's body. Yamashita stank of rotten meat and death, and Koki gagged at the smell and recoiled, but his hands were on the colder ones very quickly. "Let him go!"

Yamashita shook him off easily, causing him to fall to the floor. Koki leapt up, wrapping his arms around Yamashita's neck and using his full bodyweight to try to topple the other over. Yamashita growled deep in his throat, and spun around, causing Ueda to collapse again. Koki was in his hold within seconds.

"I do not like being betrayed," Yamashita said darkly. Koki couldn't look away from his black eyes. "I plan to kill him, and then kill you. It is a shame, really," he said, looking over to where Ueda had curled into a ball in fear, "He was a lovely little snack."

Koki couldn't help it - he growled, the sound ripping from his throat before he could stop it. Yamashita turned to him with his eyebrows raised. "Oh? What was that? Are you trying to scare me?" he said mockingly. "I am very sorry, but that is not going to work."

Yamashita threw Koki into the wall, and he collided with it roughly. He vaguely saw Ueda stand up shakily, and grab hold onto Yamashita's coat. Yamashita scowled and threw Ueda off, crouching down to the other man and pulling him back up with a hand around his throat. Koki knew Yamashita had the strength to literally crush the both of them in seconds, so why didn't he?

He was toying with them.

Yamashita looked into Ueda's eyes. Koki watched in horror as he smirked, and lowered his gaze onto the bite mark on his shoulder. Yamashita smiled widely, baring his terrible yellow fangs at the frightened man.

"N-no, plea--" Ueda whimpered, but he was cut off as Yamashita covered his mouth with his own. The kiss was forceful and harsh; as Yamashita pulled away, Ueda's lip was bleeding. Yamashita chuckled, sending shivers down both of the humans' spines, and leaned in again, ignoring the way Ueda turned his head away. He locked eyes with the other, paralysing him, and licked the droplets of blood away, a disgusting satisfied smile appearing on his face as he tasted it.

"Stop! You're fucking disgusting!"

Yamashita laughed against Ueda's skin, and pressed a kiss against the scar on his shoulder before allowing him to slide down the wall once again.

"I am simply surviving. How is that disgusting?" he asked, turning to pin Koki with that stare of his. "I'm tired of this. Not putting up a very good fight, are you?" Yamashita seemed disappointed, and kicked Ueda's foot. "Let's play a game, shall we? If you can somehow find your way out by the end of the day, then I will not bother you and your blood again. If you cannot, you shall become my dinner, Tanaka Koki."

He was letting them go? Koki didn't trust him, but he nodded anyway. They had no other choice.

"Don't agree!" Ueda yelled. "He'll just use y--" The man was shut up again as Yamashita kicked him again.

"If I catch _you_ , Tatsuya, I will kill you," he said, crouching down to run a hand over Ueda's cheek with a terrifying gentleness. "I will miss that beautiful face of yours."

"I won't miss yours," Ueda spat. Yamashita just chuckled, and stood up.

"Have fun," he said, before he disappeared.

Koki crawled over to Ueda, his head spinning. "You okay?" he asked, looking the other over. His neck was bruised from where Yamashita had pulled him up; his lip was still bleeding and he looked lost.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," he said, brushing himself off and standing up. "Are we gonna get moving?" Koki nodded, and followed him, limping down the hallway.

They were both battered and bruised, and Koki had a strange ringing in his ears ever since Yamashita had thrown him against the wall. Yamashita had practically told them to leave; something was off, and Koki wanted to know what.

"Did he say he loved you?" Koki blurted out. Ueda turned slowly.

"Yes..."

"Oh." It seemed as though Ueda did not want to pursue the matter, so Koki tried to let it drop. After an eternity of silence, however, he asked, "Why?"

" _Why?"_ Ueda hissed, coming to a stop. "What do you mean?"

"I mean - I didn't mean it badly - I meant... he's a vampire. You're human. You _are_ human, right? You're not going to transform into a unicorn or anything, are you?"

Ueda looked at him incredulously. "What."

Koki shook his head. "Nevermind. Let's just keep walking."

"I'm human," Ueda said slowly. "But I knew him before he changed. Sorry - before he _was_ changed."

"Really?" Ueda nodded, a wistful little smile playing about his cut lips as they walked side by side.

"He was one of those people you really look up to, you know? All smiles and suits and positive attitudes. He was just a businessman pushing buttons for other, higher people, but he gave it his all. Yamashita was so inspiring," Ueda said, smiling. Koki's breath caught in his throat as Ueda's face transformed into something more beautiful than he had previously seen.

"Hey, when we get out of here... can we go for a coffee or something?" Koki asked, and Ueda stopped.

"Are you seriously asking me out when we're being chased by a vampire?"

"Yes."

"Okay."

>>><<<

 

There were many more corners and twists and turns and black, threatening doorways in their search for some form of exit. Koki began to worry about his plan of heading straight; what if the exit was behind one of those doors back there? What if they were heading right into some form of trap? What if there _was_ no exit? When was the end of the day, anyway? In this place, they couldn't tell up from down.

He was distracted by Ueda's hand suddenly slipping into his own. "Calm down," he said. Koki gave a tight smile. Easier said than done.

It was then that they heard the sounds. Ripping; growling; _screaming_. Ueda shot him a frightened glance, and they were off again, running down the endless corridor.

They turned corner after corner, until they both slid to a stop, stomachs dropping and heartrates racing. There was an arm in their path. Koki's breath hitched as he looked at it, feeling ill.

"Is that an _arm_?" Ueda asked, voice lowered. Koki nodded.

"What do we do? Ju--Just walk around it?" Koki asked, eyes fixed on the arm. "Or should we ju--"

"Koki." Koki turned to Ueda, who looked incredibly pale. "Where's the rest of the body?" Koki felt his heart speed up.

And then there were those ripping noises again. Koki and Ueda looked at each other, and turned slowly, eyeing the gaping doorway opposite them. The noises were coming from inside the darkness.

There was something frightening yet intriguing about the blackness of the open doorway. They didn't want to know what was happening, yet they found themselves edging ever closer, hands entwined strongly.

"What're we doing? No! Koki, come back, please!" Ueda pleaded, pulling on Koki's hand, but his feet were still moving. They were being pulled in, by some force unknown. Maybe it was just some sort of sick curiosity; maybe it was Yamashita's powers. They never found out.

It was another room; a large room with a floor of mud and rat droppings. The temperature had dropped considerably, but the noises were louder. Louder, and deafening.

There were no more screams.

As they got closer, they could make out the scene in front of them, and their stomachs turned. Yamashita knelt on the floor, his long coat trailing in the mud, ripping apart some unfortunate man. The crunching of bones could be heard as Yamashita tore them from their sockets, peeling away the skin and feasting on the blood flowing from the detached limb. Koki felt Ueda squeeze his hand, and briefly saw the other raise his other hand to his mouth.

"....Jin..." he breathed, and Yamashita's head shot up. Koki froze in fear. "That's Jin, you sick bastard!" Ueda screamed, seeing the man's blood running down Yamashita's chin and staining his skin. "He was your best friend!"

Yamashita smiled, baring those teeth again. "Was."

"Run."

Koki wrenched Ueda away and forced him back into the corridor they had been travelling through. Koki could see Ueda's tear flowing behind them; could hear the sobs; but he couldn't do anything about it. All they could do was run. They heard Yamashita snarl somewhere behind them, and they quickened their pace, determined not to become a meal like that other man had.

Jin.

There was a door in front of them, suddenly. A large, golden, ornate door, with intricate details carved into it. Koki stared, but Ueda was pushing him through it and into the room beyond. They were in the same room that Ueda had been caged.

"What the--" Koki started, but Ueda was moving, fueled by a rage that was barely contained by his small body. Koki could only watch as he moved past the wrecked cage, over to the wall, where Koki had smashed the chest of drawers in their escape earlier. He determinedly picked up a long section of wood, splintered but strong. Ueda looked up at him and nodded.

Koki stared as the door slowly opened with a creak, and Yamashita walked elegantly through the doorway, a sick smile twisting his lips. He didn't notice Koki - it was as if he saw right through him, only seeing Ueda at the other end of the room. Koki gagged again as Yamashita walked past, the scent of blood fresh on his skin.

Ueda was breathing heavily as he stood rooted to the floor, anger blazing in his eyes as he grasped the wood firmly. Yamashita stopped in front of him, and cocked his head.

"What are you doing, little Tatsuya?" He asked, and Koki saw Ueda recoil at Yamashita's breath on his face.

"You killed Jin."

"Yes. And I enjoyed every piece of him," Yamashita said, licking his lips. "And I will enjoy you, too - your blood is the finest I've ever tasted..."

Koki couldn't just stand there anymore; he leapt onto Yamashita's back with a surge of energy, taking the other by surprise and bringing him crashing onto the floor. He vaguely heard Ueda's shout, warning him, but was too occupied with the vampire's foot against his back, pressing hard onto it. Koki cried out in pain as his bones tried to hold out against his strength.

Suddenly the pressure was gone, and he scrambled to his feet, turning to see Ueda kissing Yamashita, an evident grimace on his face as he tasted Jin's blood inside the other's mouth. Ueda signalled pointedly with his eyes, and Koki realised that the other had dropped his piece of wood. He rushed over to retrieve it, but by that time Yamashita had gained his senses and was pushing Ueda away - the lighter man slid across the floor, holding his head where it had collided with the tiles.

Yamashita rounded on Koki again, hands grabbing for any part of his body, and Koki was quickly trapped in his grip, the wood falling to the ground with a clatter. Yamashita chuckled.

"Time's up," he hissed, face close to Koki's own. "Shall I eat you first, for being so troublesome? Or should I drain Tatsuya before your eyes? Let you hear his agonising screams as life leaves him?"

"You are truly terrible," Koki managed to say, spitting on the other's face. Yamashita didn't even blink as he brought a hand to wipe away the spit.

"Thank you. I do rather enjoy the way he screams when I bite him; the way he writhes in my grip even though it's futile. It's beautiful, don't you think? The way---"

Yamashita crumpled to the floor.

Ueda stood, panting, above him, driving the piece of splintered wood into the vampire's body and _twisting_ repeatedly. There was a horrible grinding sound as he did so, but he didn't stop - he punctured as much of Yamashita's body as he could, until Koki grabbed him from behind and wrenched him away.

"No--let me go!" Ueda struggled, but Koki forced him to let go of the wood. "He killed Ji--"

"I know, I know

"At least let me make sure he's dead!"

"I think he is," Koki said, looking over his shoulder at the once-human creature.

Tears escaped from Ueda's eyes, as the adrenaline left his body, and he slid to the floor. "I killed Yamashita..."

Koki sat down next to him and pulled him into his arms, cradling the other. But Koki and Ueda both knew that they had to get out of there - the stench of death and hopelessness was somehow even more obvious than before, tainting the air with it's rank smell. Yet there was something keeping the both of them going, as Ueda's tears dried upon his face and the two of them exited the way they had come.

"How're we going to get out?" Ueda asked, hand firmly in Koki's grip once again.

"Who knows? But we'll find a way."

 

\--the end

 


End file.
